My dog is so spoiled, nobody likes him

Yes, it's true.  People don't tell me they don't like Gabe, but I know they don't.  He's irritating and needy.  He often refuses to come when he's called.  He raises the roof barking at people approaching the house, especially people he likes!  Yesterday I told Cliff, "If we were at someone else's house and they had a dog exactly like Gabe, I would hate him."

But as it is, he's my jealous, loud-mouth dog, and I love him.  I baby-talk to him and tell him he's my puppy and make him beg for treats.  I would love it if he had some manners, but I put up with him because I'm the one who made him the way he is, and sometimes, he's my life-line.  

My long-suffering husband just puts up with Gabe the best he can.  When we have visitors, Gabe won't leave them alone: he has to jump onto laps and smell their breath.  Sometimes, for the peace of our guests, I put him in his kennel and shut him in.  At least he willingly stays in there with no whining or barking (unless he hears a UPS truck drive up).  

The neighbors across the fence from us have German Shepherds that they turn loose sometimes.  The dogs run over here and go down to our woods where they chase deer, so it pretty much ruins any deer hunting on the place.  One of the dogs acts particularly vicious, barking when I go to the chicken house (next to the fence that separates our properties).  That's the one who came running over and snapped at Gabe recently before I could pick him up; he's one reason I take Gabe out on a leash most of the time, because Gabe will bark at the killer dog to get his attention, and the German Shepherd answers with growling and snarling and sometimes, runs over here to settle the score.   

And then there's my outside cat, who causes few problems for anyone.  I suppose you could call him an inside/outside cat, because it's true he spends probably four or five hours a day inside, napping either in Gabe's dog bed in the living room or the dog kennel in the bedroom.  If nature calls, he goes to the front door.  Once in awhile I catch him on our bed or dresser, or even on a kitchen chair, considering whether he should risk jumping onto the table to eat butter:  At times like that, I swipe him down to the floor with a forearm.  When I'm ready to put him outside and he isn't ready to go, he runs from me, getting underneath a chair or under my bed where I can't reach him.  Cliff thinks that's the best spectator sport ever, watching the cat sneak behind or under a chair with me trying to catch him.  If he hides in Gabe's big kennel, I'm forced to get down on hands and knees (ouch), crawl halfway into the kennel, and pull him out.  If he's under the bed, I get the broom and poke at him until he goes running to another hidey-hole.  My husband just laughs.  After all, it wasn't his idea to invite these animals into our home.

Blue-the-cat sleeps outside at night, I'm not sure where.  If it's above freezing, he and Mama Kitty often come running out from under a small shed out by the shop when I've called them to breakfast in the barn.  The last two nights, when we had single-digit temperatures, both cats had some other spot to sleep; yesterday Blue came from somewhere inside the barn.  He always eats like he's starving.  I come back to the house, and about five minutes later Blue is at the door with a full belly.  He and Mama Kitty are always waiting on the front porch for the four-thirty PM feeding time, when I give them canned food.  Cliff watches me get Gabe's supper first, then put cat food in two different dishes (Mama eats her food on the porch outside, Blue on the enclosed back porch) and feed them separately because  Mama Kitty refuses to eat with another cat; she'd sooner go hungry.  

Cliff says I milked cows and raised calves for so much of my life, I can't do without chores... so I've made a chore out of feeding my pets!  He may be right about that.  I used to go out before daylight with a flashlight in one hand and a milk bucket in the other; now I go outside with a leash in one hand and a flashlight in the other and watch a dog pee and poop.  Sounds like choring to me!

I hope everyone had a nice Christmas day.  We did OK.  Cliff talked to one of his sisters, I talked to my sister.  Granddaughter Monica, her husband, and great-grand-daughter Brynn, who is about to start walking any day, stopped by briefly.  

And now the new year approaches.  I'm watching the Covid numbers, but so far my plan is to return to Sunday church services January 10.  That will keep me at home until we see how the numbers of new cases have been affected by people celebrating Christmas and partying on New Year's Eve.  As I've often said, it's easy to social distance at both churches I attend, and I wear a mask besides.  I just felt it might be wise to stay home during the holidays.  Other than quick visits to a couple of grocery stores, we've done pretty well with that plan.

After two frigid days and nights, we'll be in the fifties today.  Hallelujah!